Affection
by SammyLynn
Summary: Will Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs stop pranking? Doubt it! But will they ever grow up fall in love? Set in 7th year. Ch. 9 up!
1. The Prank Of All Pranks

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for the plot of this fan fiction, and any new characters I might create. Short & sweet…lol.

Affection or Adventure?

Chapter 1: The Prank Of All Pranks

"Bye mum, bye dad!" Lily Evans yelled out of her window as the Hogwarts Express started moving slowly north. She then shifted her gaze to a group of boys screaming at the train to wait for them as they jumped on. _Those Marauders! _She thought, and laughed silently to herself. 

"Lily…Hey, Lily!" Lily turned her head to her three best friends, Chloe Williams, Penny Payge, and Natalie Brown. Lily was the reason of the group; sure, they were all probably the most clever girls at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but Lily knew where to stop when it came to getting back at the Marauders for the pranks they pulled. Lily had lovely dark-red hair that fell to the middle of her back, and stunning emerald-green eyes. 

She brushed a lock of hair out of her face and said with a grin, "Yes?"

Chloe was sitting across from her, cross-legged, twirling her long, light brown hair around her fingertips out of habit. "You were day-dreaming again…" She said with a pretty smile.

"I was not! I was just watching the Marauders…they almost missed the train!" The girls giggled. 

"Now, what would our last year at Hogwarts be without the Marauders?" Said Penny, the shortest of them all, curled up in the corner of the seat with her strawberry-blonde head resting on a pillow. "It would be-"

"Calm, for once?" Interrupted Natalie, looking irritably out of the window at the green trees that were flying past them. 

"Calm?" Said Chloe, her hazel-green eyes flashing mischievously. "Who wants a calm year? I don't! It has to be full of adventure, excitement, and-"

"Detention?" Lily cut in. 

"No! I just feel…I don't know…like I'm missing something…" 

"Maybe it's love," Said Penny with a deep sigh.

__

Love? Lily thought to herself. _Maybe she's right…maybe that's what we're all missing…_

BANG! Lily was pulled from her train of thought as there was an explosion outside the door to their compartment. Seconds later, three tall boys came racing through the open door, followed by one short, and rather plump one. The last boy to enter the room, the tag-along, as one might say, slid the door shut clumsily. The boys collapsed, out of breath.

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"That…was…close!" James Potter gasped. He looked around at the inhabitants of the compartment he and his friends had just practically slid into. _Hmm…look at what we have here…Chloe Williams…always a major rival…Penny Payge…for a small girl, she has a big temper…Natalie Brown…I wonder what her problem is today? And…Lily! _His heart skipped a beat and his hazel eyes shined as he smiled. James had a crush on Lily since their fourth year at Hogwarts, but they had failed to show each other anything but hate.

"Excellent, though, Prongs! Excellent! Snivellus didn't stand a chance!" Said James's best friend and partner in crime, Sirius Black, using his nickname.

"Too right you are, Padfoot!" James replied, lifting up a hand to mess up his already untidy black hair, making it look windblown. He was still smiling until Lily Evans whipped around, scowling. 

"Ahh, you're here, Ev-" James started, but Lily interrupted him.

"What have you done now, Potter?!" She yelled at him. 

"Why don't you open the door and find out?" James tempted her.

"Alright…" Lily made to get up, but the third boy spoke for the first time.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you…Prongs, why did you tell her to do that? It could be hazardous to _our _health, you know!" Remus Lupin said, grinning and running a hand through his light brown hair.

"Moony, I was just trying to-" 

"D…D…Dungbombs…" Panted the short, plump boy who was leaning against the door, still trying to catch his breath. 

"Wormtail! You spoiled the surprise!" Sirius yelled, brushing his elegant dark hair out of his blue eyes. 

"Wha…Wha…What? You don't want to smell it, do you?" Peter Pettigrew stated, still attempting to calm himself. 

"True…" Said Sirius thoughtfully.

"Mind if we stay with you guys…oh, I mean _girls_…we don't want our clothes smelling before we even get to school." James said, ever so slyly. 

"Of course we don't-" Natalie started.

"OH YES WE DO!" Lily shouted. "Those are _your_ dung bombs out there, so _you_ can go suffer!" 

"Lily, lighten up. Just because you're Head Girl doesn't mean that you can't have any fun. Just look at me! I'm a Prefect!" Said Remus. Lily gaped at him for a few seconds, but sat down and turned away from the boys.

"Isn't there any other compartment that doesn't have that awful smell in it?" Lily muttered under her breath, when she thought nobody was listening. 

James thought about her statement for a moment, and glanced around at his fellow marauders. "Now?" He whispered. They all nodded back at him. "Now that you mention it, Evans, there is one compartment that we didn't bomb yet."

"Why don't you leave and stop bugging us, then?" Lily shot back at him.

"Well, maybe we just like spending time with you all. Ever think of that Evans?" James replied.

"Plus, there is the little downside that we are in that very compartment." Said Sirius with a handsome smirk at the girls.

"Well, with that said, good old Padfoot…" James pulled what looked like an ugly, brown ball out of the pocket of his robes, along with what looked like a thin, wooden rod. He placed the ball on the ground and lit it with the fiery tip of his wand. All of the Marauders immediately bolted for the door, which was now open due to Peter, and raced toward their own compartment. They had left it conveniently dung-free. 

James heard a big BANG and ran a little faster, considering that he could also hear the screams and yells coming from the girls in the end compartment. 

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A voice, presumably the conductors, echoed through the train. "We will be reaching Hogwarts in ten minutes' time. Leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately. Thank you."

"James Potter, I will get you back for this if it is the last thing I do!" Lily Evans breathed, as a small piece of parchment landed in front of her, saying **"You've just been pranked by the Marauders!" **

A/N: For the people who don't know (not that you're stupid or anything), 'Chloe' is pronounced 'Klo-ee.'


	2. New Additions To Hogwarts

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for the plot of this fan fiction, and any new characters I might create. Short & sweet…lol.

Affection or Adventure?

Chapter 2: New Additions To Hogwarts

The train skidded to a halt as Sirius was pulling on his school robes. He looked around at his three best friends as he gathered his belongings. "Well," He said with a laugh. "That was definitely the prank of all pranks. Did you hear them squeal?"

"Yep, we'll remember that one, Padfoot! We need to think of more, though…we really need to make any imprint this year. It's our last!" James said with a slightly sad tone.

"Yeah, some major stunts must be in order! The school will remember us forever…" Said Remus wistfully.

The train began to unload as Peter spoke. "We should discuss it tonight, Merlin knows it will probably be the only night we will have without homework."

"Good idea," Said James. "But do you really think I'm going to do most of it?"

"Prongs! Our N.E.W.T.'s are coming up at the end of this year! You know, the Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests? You want to pass them and get a good job when we leave this place, right?" Remus said. 

"Moony, how can you be so thick? It's usually Wormtail with those comments! We…well, Prongs and I, at least…know everything we need to! Becoming animagi didn't teach us nothing, you know! You, Prongs, and I are probably at the top of our class! Sorry I can't say anything of the sort for poor Wormtail, here…" Said Sirius, as though he was stating the obvious. 

Peter scowled. "I'm clever, and you know it."

"Whatever…" Sirius muttered under his breath. _There's something bad about him, I just can't figure out what… _He thought to himself.

They stepped out of the train into the cool, clear night and heard a familiar voice.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over here, please! Firs' years!" 

"Hello, Hagrid!" Said James. Hagrid was the Hogwarts Gamekeeper, and he was also the biggest man that Sirius had ever seen; he was at least twice as tall as an average person, and probably three times as broad. One of his hands was alone about the size of a trash can lid, and his feet the size of baby dolphins. 

"Hey there, James! Got yer whole gang with yeh! 'Lo Sirius, Remus, Peter…how are yeh all doin'?"

"Great, thanks Hagrid!" Remus replied.

"So, what do you think Moony?" Sirius asked as they walked away from Hagrid. "When's the next full moon? I'm in the mood for an adventure…" 

"Keep your voice down! I think it'll be in a week…sound good?" Everyone nodded as they stepped into a carriage. It started moving immediately, as if it was drawn by invisible horses. "Anyway," Remus continued. "We need to be more careful this year. We almost got caught last year. You have to remember that what you guys do is illegal! You're unregistered!"

Sirius, James, and Peter were all unregistered animagi, which meant that they could change into animals at will. They would be in serious trouble if anyone ever found out, but they were clever enough to watch out for themselves…most of the time. They had to be probably the cleverest boys in their year to even become what they were. Sirius could turn into a dog, James could turn into a stag, and Peter could turn into a rat, hence their nicknames. As for Remus, he was a werewolf. He had gotten bit by one when he was younger, and his friends found out about it. Instead of running away from him, as most people would, they became animagi at great personal risks. 

Sirius said, "We know, we know, Moony! Come off it. The joke that we played on old Snivellus was-"

"Extremely dangerous! Do you know what would've happened if you had been caught? Do you know-"

"We know, Moony!" James piped up. "We know, okay? We'll be more careful. We promise. Right guys?"

"Right, right…" Sirius and Peter mumbled. The carriage stopped, and they hopped out. Sirius looked sideways at who was exiting the carriage next to them, and his eyes fell on Chloe Williams. 

__

Wow…he thought to himself. _She's gotten so pretty…how come I haven't realized it before? …Because you've been too busy flirting with all of the other girls that eye you hopefully, you stupid prat! …Well, at least she doesn't swoon over me…that is so annoying. _Sirius was still watching Chloe when she looked up and saw him. He quickly shifted his gaze and started to listen to what his friends were talking about as they walked through the castle doors and into the magnificent Great Hall of Hogwarts.

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__

Am I just imagining things, or was Sirius Black just looking at me? No…not just looking…but from what I observed…staring. Now why on earth would he do that? …Maybe he's beginning to notice me! No…no way…he's so handsome, he could have his pick of any witch in the school…why on earth would he choose me? …He wouldn't…

"Chloe? Are you alright?" Chloe heard Lily speaking to her. 

"What? Oh, yeah, I'm fine, thanks." Chloe replied with a smile. _Just a coincidence, _she thought.

They walked past the statues of winged boars and proceeded to the open doors of the school. 

"It's good to be back." Chloe sighed as she walked through the doors. The others around her agreed.

When they reached the Gryffindor House table, they sat down and started to chat merrily with each other, waiting for the first years to arrive and be sorted into their houses. Professor McGonagall, head of the Gryffindor House and the Transfiguration teacher, came from behind a door and placed a stool on the middle of what appeared to be a stage of some sort. On top of the stool sat an old hat; the Sorting Hat. The hat would sing a song to welcome the first years entering Hogwarts. Then, it would be placed on every child's head, in turn, as it called out the house to which they would belong for the rest of their years at the school. The different houses were Gryffindor (Chloe, Lily, Penny, Natalie, and the Marauder's house), Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Gryffindors were brave and bold, Hufflepuffs were loyal, Ravenclaws were clever, and Slytherins were sly and cunning. _I wonder which house my brother will get into,_ Chloe wondered. 

She had been sitting for no longer than a minute when a voice called out her name.

"Chloe! Chloe!" Her little brother, who was about to begin his first year at Hogwarts, was racing toward her.

"Oh my goodness, Ryan!" She got to her feet and ran over to him. He hugged her waist, and wouldn't budge when she tried to pull him off of her. "Ryan, you are supposed to be with the other first years."

"B…b…but I'm s…sc…scared!" Ryan whispered, his innocent blue eyes staring up at her.

"You really shouldn't be. Come on, let's find them…" She dragged him out of the Great Hall. Chloe could just see some straggling first years, looking just as scared as Ryan, walking into a room.

"Now Ryan," Chloe said to her brother. "You're to go in that room and listen to the witch in charge, alright? I have to get back." She added as she heard the Sorting Hat begin to sing. "You'll be fine, Ryan, I promise." 

Chloe watched her brother enter the room, and she walked back to the Great Hall. The Sorting Hat had stopped singing, and the sorting began. Chloe quickly ran to her table and sat down next to Lily.

"Applegate, Christopher!" called Professor McGonagall. A clumsy, blonde boy hobbled over to the stool and put the Sorting Hat on his head. It immediately shouted "HUFFLEPUFF!" and the Hufflepuff table cheered while the next name was read. 

And so it went on, until all of the names had been called except for one.

"Williams, Ryan!" Shouted the Professor, and Ryan tried to walk confidently over to the middle of the stage. He sat down and placed the hat on his head. After a moment, the hat yelled out "GRYFFINDOR!" and the table Chloe was sitting at erupted with cheers. Ryan ran over and sat next to his sister. 

"I told you that you shouldn't have been scared! It's wonderful here, in the wizarding world. Everything is-"

"So, Williams, had to help your little brother overcome the terrible fear of being a first year?"

"Shut it, Potter, or I'll hex you in front of everyone!" Chloe shouted to the boy sitting diagonally across from her, in front of Lily. She was just taking out her wand as heaps of food suddenly appeared on the golden plates before them. Everyone at the table started helping themselves to chicken, mashed potatoes, and plenty of other foods.

"You got lucky this time, Potter." Chloe said menacingly, sitting back down. She heard James mutter something under his breath, and she thought she saw Sirius elbow him out of the corner of her eye.


	3. Plotting Revenge

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for the plot of this fan fiction, and any new characters I might create. Short & sweet…lol.

A/N: Special shout-outs to all who reviewed! Windy, sirius-lover-1, cherryplum11, and all the others!

Affection or Adventure?

Chapter 3: Plotting Revenge

"Oy, food!" Remus yelled, though he was barely heard over the chatter of the people around him. He and his friends started piling their plates with everything they could reach. 

"Moony, pass the potatoes," Sirius said, reaching toward them. 

"Sure," Remus replied, after helping himself. 

"I wonder," James said, "I wonder if…you know…they'll get us back for the dung bomb." Remus followed his gaze to Lily Evans.

"Prongs…you know…I reckon we ought to be careful. You're right…they've pulled some major tricks on us, even though we don't dare let them know how good they are." Remus replied to James's statement. 

"Yeah, but they're just a bunch of girls." Said Peter.

"Well, that's what _I'm _afraid of," Remus said with a grin.

"Well, we'll see, won't we?" Sirius asked. They all nodded in agreement. 

When they finished eating, their headmaster, Professor Albus Dumbledore, stood up to make a speech after running his long fingers through his long, silvery hair and beard and pushing his half-moon glasses further up his crooked nose.

"Welcome, welcome! I hope that you have all enjoyed the excellent feast, I certainly did! Anyway, I just thought that I should remind you that the Forbidden Forest is out-of-bounds and is not to be entered by any of the students here. Some of you know this already, but I am sure a select few will disregard this rule completely." The Marauders grinned at one another as Dumbledore continued. "Those few are aware of the consequences of their actions. Well, what needed to be said has been said, so I leave you all to go to your dormitories and get a good night's sleep." 

All of the people sitting down got up and headed out of the double-doors to their common rooms. The Gryffindors headed up a marble staircase, down a dark hall, and stopped in front of a portrait of a very fat lady in a pick dress. 

"Password?" She said to them.

Lily Evans spoke up. "Valor." 

The portrait swung forward on its hinges, and one by one the Gryffindors entered their cozy, warm common room. 

Remus ran straight for one of his favorite chairs by the crackling fire. His friends did the same, James and Sirius occupying the other two comfy chairs, while Peter sat on the floor. 

"You know what we have to do, right?" Sirius asked them.

"What are you talking about, Padfoot?" Remus said.

"About the girls! We're going to have to get them before they get us back! They won't be expecting us to pull prank after prank! They'll think that we're taking a break, you know?" 

"I don't know…they're pretty smart…" Said James.

"They won't be expecting this though, he's right Prongs." Remus replied. 

"Well…alright. What should we do?" Asked James.

"Dungbombs?" Peter offered.

"You git, Wormtail! We just did that!" Sirius and James said in unison. 

"I have an idea." Said Remus. But before he could tell them, he looked up and saw Penny Payge enter the common room and sit with her friends in a corner opposite the Marauders. _She's pretty cute…_ He thought.

"Moony! Don't look at them, they might think something's up!" Whispered Sirius, and Remus turned back towards his friends.

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"Look at them staring at us!" Penny said, leaning up against the wall in the corner of the common room that she and her friends were sitting in. "It's almost like they're plotting something else…why on earth would they be doing that when they _just_ pulled a big one on us?"

"Probably trying to take us by surprise," Said Natalie in a distant manner.

"Oh my gosh, you're right, Natalie! Your absolutely right! That sounds just like them!" Lily exclaimed.

"Keep your voice down!" Chloe said.

"You guys, I have the _perfect _idea." Penny breathed.

"Erm…Penny? Just because Lily got a little over-excited about what Natalie said doesn't mean you have to speak below a whisper." Said Chloe, mocking Penny's soft voice.

Penny shoved her. "Shut up! Anyway, don't you want to know my idea?"

"Yeah…" Said Lily and Chloe in unison. Natalie had taken out a nail filer and started to file her nails. 

"Natalie!" Lily shouted, waving her hand in front of Natalie's eyes. "Listen! I want to get back at that arrogant Potter for what he did to us on the train!"

"Fine, fine…" Natalie muttered, pocketing her nail filer.

"Anyway…where was I before I was so rudely interrupted?" Penny continued, smiling. "Oh, yes…all we have to do is put our water-works to the test!"

"What do you mean by _that_?" Asked Natalie.

"What I mean is, we have to wait for them to do whatever they're planning to do, and in the meantime, we have to work on our crying skills."

"OH!" Said Lily and Chloe, realizing what Penny meant.

Natalie was now brushing her hair. "Huh?" 

"I'll tell her," Chloe offered. "Nat, what we have to do it wait until the Marauders pull their next prank, and then we all start crying."

"Why on earth would we start crying…wouldn't we be angry and start yelling at them for their immaturity?" Natalie said. She was quite a clever girl, but she had slight listening problems.

Penny and Chloe hit themselves in the head while Lily sighed. "Care to take over, Lil?" Penny asked.

"Sure. Okay, Natalie, this is what we're going to do. After they do whatever they have planned, we are going to start crying to make them feel bad. We won't mean it, of course, it's just our way of getting revenge."

"Oh…sounds good to me!" Said Natalie, grinning evilly. 

"Yeah! Perfect, right? So, we can think of something really sad…and it has to be _really_ sad; we need to keep ourselves from laughing…we can stay for however long we can without doing so…and then we can run away from wherever the Marauders pull their lame stunt!"

"Excellent, Penny! Then, we can just ignore them for a few days, and laughing their faces when we tell them it was all a joke!" Chloe said.

"And just think…we won't be doing anything against school rules!"

"Lily, live it up a little!" Penny yelled, and they laughed away their first night back at Hogwarts just thinking about the looks on the boys' faces when their enemies start crying.


	4. Unpleasant Thoughts

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for the plot of this fan fiction, and any new characters I might create. Short & sweet…lol. 

Affection or Adventure?

Chapter 4: Unpleasant Thoughts

"I'm going to bed." Said Peter shortly after Sirius's comment about him being a git. 

"Wormtail, don't you want to know what my idea is?" Said Remus.

"You can tell me tomorrow, Moony. I'm tired." Without another word, Peter stomped off towards his dormitory, and slammed the door behind him.

__

One day…He thought. _One day, I'll get you back for everything you have done to make my life hell! One day I'll get you all back…You think I'm bad now? You'll see…I'll show you all…_

Peter pulled on his pajamas and yanked open the curtains surrounding his four-poster bed. He climbed in, still thinking horrible thoughts. 

__

You call me a git, Sirius? You'll pay…maybe you'll pay most of all…or James…he's always been such a star, with Quidditch and everything…or maybe that smarty-pants, Remus…anyway, you'll pay…I promise you that.

Peter slowly drifted off to sleep, dreaming of the things he could do in the future to seek revenge on his so-called friends. 

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Natalie let out a huge yawn. "Hey you guys, I'm going to hit the sack. It's late."

"Alright Nat! See you in the morning, and try to practice crying!" Penny said. The girls burst into laughter as Natalie walked away, yawning again.

She didn't even bother changing because of her fatigue. She lay down on her bed and felt annoyed with her friends. 

__

It's always Marauder this, Marauder that. Can't they talk about anything else but the Marauders? They probably like them…Natalie thought. 

__

But then again, why shouldn't they like them? There's James, he's such a good Quidditch player…and Sirius, he's so good-looking, every girl wants him to herself! And there's Remus…he's getting quite handsome, come to think about it, and he's intelligent. Well, they are all clever. The only oddball in their little group is that Peter Pettigrew…there's something about him…he reminds me so much of a rat. 

Natalie fell asleep a few moments later.

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Peter awoke early, before anyone else in the dormitory. As he changed into his school robes, he mentally forgave his friends…this time. He waited for the others to awake.

When they did, Peter waited for them to get cleaned up and changed, and then he asked them about the night before.

"So, Moony, what's your great idea?" 

They laughed. "Ok, here's the plan…"

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Natalie woke up late, and she found that her friends had already dressed and gone down to breakfast. She pulled on her school robes and went down to join them.

When she got into the common room, they were sitting near the extinguished fire, tears streaming down their cheeks.

"What's up, you guys?" Natalie asked nervously.

All of a sudden, they started laughing. "_Natalie!_" Said Lily. 

"We're practicing!" Chloe whispered. They wiped their eyes.

"Oh my gosh, I forgot! Before I went to bed, my mind was completely on something else."

"Like _what?_" Said Penny, with a smirk. 

"Erm…anyone for breakfast?" Natalie changed the subject. 

"Oh, sure!" Said Lily. They left the dormitory just as the Marauders descended the stairs leading from their dormitory.

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"Did you hear that?" Said Peter. "They were practicing crying…"

"Yes, Wormtail, we heard it…we were right there with you, remember?" Said Sirius, grinning. 

"Well, what could it mean, oh great Padfoot?" Peter said, glaring at Sirius.

"Wormtail, come off it, he was joking." Said James, looking annoyed. 

"Whatever…but what does it all mean? Why on earth would they practice crying?" Peter asked.

Remus spoke up. "I don't know, but I'm hungry."

A/N: Hey guys, I'm sorry this chapter was kinda short (and dull, come to think of it). The next chapter is gonna be long, though, because that's when the Marauders pull their prank! 


	5. Jokes And Tears

Disclaimer: Okay, okay. This is the 5th chapter of this fan fiction. I think you guys know the drill by now, but I'll write it just for the heck of it…I don't own anything except for the plot of this fan fiction, and any new characters I might create.

Affection or Adventure?

Chapter 5: Jokes and Tears

By the time Lily sat down in the Great Hall, Professor McGonagall was already handing out schedules. She was close to Lily and her friends when the Marauders entered and sat across from them. When the girls got their schedules, they gasped.

"Oh my goodness!" Penny exclaimed.

"Will you just _look _at today?" Natalie said.

"It's impossible…" Lily whispered.

"Lily, it says here that we have Double Potions with the Slytherins, Double Defense Against The Dark Arts with the Ravenclaws, Lunch, and then Double History of Magic again with the Slytherins, and Double Transfiguration again with the Ravenclaws. It's crazy!" Chloe said.

"It's impossible…" Lily whispered again. "There can't be four double classes in a day, only two! I'm going to talk to McGonagall…it has to be some kind of mistake." 

Lily got up and marched up to the staff table. "Professor McGonagall, something's wrong with our schedules. It's practically impossible to have four double classes in a day!"

"I am quite aware of that, Miss Evans."

"Look, Professor!" Lily revealed her schedule. 

Professor McGonagall gave her an odd look and said, "It looks fine to me, Miss Evans." The Professor handed Lily back her schedule and she glared at it. It now said that she had Double Potions with the Slytherins, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Lunch, History of Magic, and Double Transfiguration with the Ravenclaws. 

"Potter…" Lily breathed.

"What was that, Miss Evans?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"Nothing, Professor. Sorry to bother you." Lily whipped around and walked back to her table. Sure enough, the Marauders were erupting with laughter. 

"You really need to grow up!" She shouted at them.

"Yeah, and we really need to get to class, Lily!" Chloe said, and dragged her out of the Great Hall before she could say anything else.

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Meanwhile, at the Gryffindor table…

"Oh man, that was great!" Said Sirius.

"Did you see her face, Prongs?" Remus asked. 

"Yeah…she looks pretty when she's angry, huh?" James asked, staring at the space where Lily had just been. 

"Prongs, snap out of it!" Sirius yelled at him, but when James turned to face him, he was staring at the spot where Chloe was sitting a moment before. 

"Padfoot, you're doing the same thing!"

"Yeah…well…it was good of Williams to get Evans out of here before she could give us detentions."

"Right, Sirius…" James looked to his right and saw Remus sneaking glances at Penny Payge, and Peter doing the same to Natalie Brown. _Whoa…_James thought. _This is too weird…_

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Lily and Chloe grabbed their books in the common room and hurried toward the dungeons, meeting the rest of their crew on the way. 

"What if that was what they were planning to do last night?" Natalie asked.

"It can't be…that was harmless." Penny replied, and Lily scowled at her. "I mean…that was just something Potter probably thought of off of the top of his head."

"Right…so when do you think they'll do whatever they planned to do?" Chloe asked.

"I don't know…but I hope it's not too soon…every time I start trying to practice crying, I end up practicing laughing instead." Penny said. 

They reached the dungeons and the Slytherins were already there. 

"Oh look, it's two purebloods and their Mudblood slaves!" Severus Snape said, and his fellow Slytherins laughed. 'Mudblood' was a horrible term for Muggle-born witches and wizards, which Lily and Chloe both were. Snape was in the same year as Lily, and had a hooked nose, disgustingly greasy hair, and was up to his eyeballs in dark arts. 

"Detention, _Snivellus._" Said Lily. 

Snape moved towards her, so his face was barely inches away from hers. "Detention is worth witnessing every second of your embarrassment, Mudblood. How could Dumbledore make something so filthy Head Girl?"

Lily felt her face go red. 

"The only filthy thing here is you." Chloe said to Snape. 

"Oh really?" Snape said. He pulled out his wand.

"Leave them alone!" Said a voice from behind Lily. 

She recognized it at once. Without even turning around, she said, "Potter, we don't need the help of you and your friends."

"I just thought I'd offer, Evans. It's our job to pick on you, not his." James came and stood beside her. 

"That's reassuring." Said Chloe. 

"It should be, Williams." Said Sirius, who had come to stand next to her. The boys were just taking out their wands and pointing them at Snape when the classroom door opened. 

"What's going on out here?" Asked their Potions master, Professor Perdente. He was balding in his early thirties, too Italian for their liking, and he always thought he was right. He never gave them anything above an 'Acceptable' for a grade when they knew they deserved better, and no matter how he tried, his jokes were not humorous at all. James never found out why they actually learned a lot in his class, though. He, Sirius, and Snape hastily removed their wands from his sight. 

"Nothing, Professor." Said Lily with a kind smile.

"Well then, do come in, we are ten minutes into the class period already." 

"Ahh, Potions." Lily heard James talking to Sirius behind her as they entered the room. "At least we can spill something on Snivellus and make it look like an accident." 

The next few days came and went with no sign of more pranks from the Marauders. 

"Do you think they gave up?" Natalie asked Lily about a week later. 

"You're kidding, right?" She replied.

The next day, the girls awoke somewhat early.

"Do you reckon we should practice?" Penny asked the rest.

"Nah…I think we've got the crying thing down by now." Chloe replied.

Lily shrugged and changed into her school robes. They all walked down the spiral staircase, and at the end of it, they got a big surprise. 

"Good morning!" Sirius brightly yelled. 

"Wow, you girls still look dead tired." Remus said. 

"Yeah, I think we'll wake you up a bit!" Shouted James.

Lily heard four swishes of wands and before she could even look up, she was drenched in ice-cold water. She looked around at her friends, and the same had happened to them. _Oh no! Water! How on earth will they know that we're crying? _She frantically wiped her face with her hands. The others did the same, but it didn't help much. She looked over at the Marauders, who were roaring with laughter, along with just about everyone else in the common room. _Well…_She thought. _We have to try. _She gave a thumbs up sign to her friends behind her back, and immediately tried thinking of something incredibly sad. _Mum and Dad are dead…you'll never see them again…_She thought to herself. 

But then another thought crept into her mind. 

_James is dead…you'll never see him again…_

Lily burst into tears. A short while later, her friends did the same. 

************************************************************************

James felt his jaw drop. _Oh no…this is bad…_He thought. He looked around at his friends, and they were gaping at the crying girls, also. 

"Er…guys? I think we went a little too far this time…" Peter whispered. 

"Yeah…maybe your right, Wormtail…" James whispered back. The other two Marauders nodded, but didn't say a thing. Their mouths were still open in shock. 

"You…you…you…" Lily was saying in between sobs. It seemed as though her words were directed towards James. She was crying, really crying. Chloe and Penny were to the left of her, tears streaming down their cheeks, sobs escaping them once in a while. Natalie was to the right of Lily, crying the least of them all, with mascara running down her face. 

"My make-up…" She whispered, and ran back up the spiral staircase. 

Penny opened up her mouth as though she was going to speak, but she closed it quickly and followed Natalie. 

A few moments passed, and Chloe looked down at her robes. "How could you?" She said very softly, and walked away in silence.

Lily stopped sobbing a few seconds later. She stared hard at James, and gave him a look of utter confusion. "_James…_" She muttered, and went back to her dormitory. 

The boys still stared at the space where the girls had just been. Everybody else in the common room had started talking merrily amongst themselves, unaware of how much damage had actually been caused. 

A/N: 'Perdente' means 'Loser' in Italian, and Professor Perdente is described to be exactly like my horrible 9th grade World History I Honors teacher (lol Caty!). Oh, and I _do not _have anything against Italians, even though my story says that the Professor was 'too Italian for their liking.' I'm not mean! _I'm _part Italian! Lol.


	6. Confusion

Disclaimer: I _hate_ these things! I don't own anything except for the plot of this fan fiction, and any new characters I might create.

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, guys! Especially my latest readers, Nuklear Firefly and Elisabeth Celebros…muchas gracias!

Affection or Adventure?

Chapter 6: Confusion

When Lily reached the door to her dormitory, she stopped and leaned against the wall with tears still in her eyes.

__

Why on earth did that thought hit me so hard? She thought. _Why and how did I even think of it? It's all so confusing…James Potter? Dead? _She felt a shiver run up her spine. _Do I have…do I have…feelings for him? _

She didn't have time to answer her own question because the door to her room suddenly swung open and two pairs of arms grabbed her and forced her inside.

Chloe and Penny collapsed with laughter after closing the door. 

"Did you see their _faces_?" Penny said.

"They were so shocked!" Said Natalie, who had already changed. 

Lily pushed the terrifying thoughts out of her head. "I call the bathroom!" She yelled. She grabbed some spare robes and raced towards the door. 

************************************************************************

By now, the Marauders had almost come out of their shock. 

"James…" Sirius was saying. "She called you by your first name!" 

"Yeah…this is bad." Remus said. 

Peter seemed the least fazed of them all. James looked at him, and he grinned. "Why are you smiling, Wormtail?" He asked him. 

"Don't you guys have memories?" He said, still smiling wickedly. 

"Yes, Wormtail, people usually _do _have memories…OH!" Sirius shouted.

"Wait…what?" James asked, and looked at Remus. He looked confused at first, but then a look of dawning comprehension came about on his face. "What am I not getting?" James asked the others.

"Prongs…remember what we heard the girls doing on our first day back here?" Sirius said.

"OH YEAH!" James shouted, and smirked as well. Then he heard four pairs of feet coming down the stairwell in front of him. He put his finger to his lips. "Let's give them a taste of their own medicine!" He whispered.

************************************************************************

When Lily walked into the common room, she glanced at the Marauders. They were looking at the floor, and they appeared to be ashamed of themselves. She looked away quickly and continued towards the portrait hole. 

"Evans…Lily?" James spoke. 

Lily did not turn around, not did any of the others following her. 

"We're sorry!" James shouted after them as they left the common room. 

As soon as the portrait of the Fat Lady slammed shut, Lily stopped and started thinking about the reason for her tears. _Why had that idea terrified me? It made me so unbelievably sad! Of course, I don't want anything to happen to him, but…why did I get so worked up over a silly little thought? _After a while she realized she was staring into space.

"Lily? Lily! Lily, are you ok?" Chloe was saying next to her. Lily snapped out of her trance and looked at her friend, who was in the process of braiding the right side of her damp hair. _I can tell her…she's my best friend…_Lily thought.

"I have to tell you something…but later." Lily added as she say Penny and Natalie walking towards her. 

************************************************************************

On their way to breakfast, James pulled Sirius aside.

"You know…there was something weird about the way Evans said my name, don't you think?" 

"She was just acting…they all were." Sirius replied. 

"The thing is, I'm not sure if she was."


	7. Cornered

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for the plot of this fan fiction, and any new characters I might create.

A/N: The reviews, the reviews! Sammy, Chocolate Taco, and Bella Black…thank you so much! Oh, and will somebody please tell me (in a review or an e-mail or something) which position James Potter actually played in Quidditch? I'm not sure…I know that it's either chaser or seeker, but I'd like someone to confirm that…Thanks!

Affection or Adventure?

Ch. 7: Cornered

That night, many Gryffindors were seen reading the notice board in their common room.

Once Chloe read the notice she had been looking for, she ran over to Penny and practically danced around with glee.

"Guess what?" She asked.

"The lake has dried up and the Giant Squid is crawling around eating students." Penny replied in a bored voice.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Maybe it's the ton of homework all the teachers have given us?"

"Well, it is N.E.W.T. year… but I know something that will take your mind off of it!"

"What?"

"Quidditch!" Chloe shouted, and danced around once more.

"Are you serious? When does practice start?" Penny asked, throwing her homework aside and grinning from ear to ear.

"Tomorrow! We have them every Tuesday and Thursday, after dinner."

"Excellent…I can't wait!"

Chloe was a Chaser for the Gryffindor Quidditch team, along with James Potter and Aiden Dunn, a boy in 6th year. The Beaters of the team were Benjamin Cole and Garrett Houston, both in 3rd year. The Keeper was Desiree Thunder, a girl in 5th year, and Penny, of course, was the Seeker, being as small and as quick as she was. 

"Hey, Chloe…who's the captain?" Penny asked.

"Aiden…McGonagall asked me, but I don't want that kind of responsibility…I just want to play, you know? I don't want to give pep talks and all that stuff!" 

"Me either…and I'm just guessing that she wouldn't have made Potter the captain if her life depended on it?" The girls giggled.

"Speaking of Potter…have you seen the Marauders?" Chloe asked.

"Nope, not since dinner when they apologized to us about ten thousand times." The girls giggled again. 

"What about Lily and Natalie?"

"They're in the Library. Let's go join them, I don't feel up to doing homework right now."

"Alright, I've already done mine."

Chloe and Penny arrived in the Library a few minutes later. Lily and Natalie were sitting in a corner. Lily was trying to improve her homework, while Natalie was trying to learn how to make a Love Potion. The Marauders were sitting a few tables away. As Chloe was passing them, she heard them muttering something about the full moon that was supposed to take place the next night.

"Hey guys!" Penny called to Lily and Natalie. 

Chloe sat down with a confused look on her face. She looked up at the Marauders, and found that they were all staring at her. She looked back at her friends quickly and joined in their conversation, knowing that she had heard something she shouldn't have.

************************************************************************

The boys turned back towards each other.

"Wormtail, are you sure she heard us?" James asked Peter.

"Positive." Peter replied.

"Did you see that odd look on her face, Prongs?" Remus asked.

"Yeah…"

"Come on you guys, she doesn't know…and even if she did, she wouldn't do anything about it." Sirius said.

"Why are you sticking up for _Williams_, Padfoot?" Peter asked. "Hmm?"

"Er…because it's true? She _wouldn't_ do anything about it!" Sirius replied. _Would she?_ He thought. _Nah…_

"So, the full moon starts tomorrow night…wait! I have Quidditch practice!" James said.

"Okay, we'll go after that. Just meet me and Peter at Hagrid's hut." Sirius said.

"Alright, around nine?" James asked.

"Sure." Said Peter.

With that, the boys got up and left for their common room.

************************************************************************

When Lily climbed into the Gryffindor common room, she saw the Marauders huddled in a corner, talking in low voices. _What are they up to, now? _She thought.

Lily went to sit by the crackling fire, and Chloe followed her while Penny and Natalie went to their dormitory to go to bed.

"Okay, so what did you want to tell me earlier?" Chloe asked her.

Lily launched into the whole story of the thought about James that she had on the day the Marauders pulled their big prank.

"The thing is," She whispered, "I don't know why that even popped into my head! I don't know why it hit me so hard…I don't _want _anything to happen to James, of course, but it was just an odd thought! I'mso confused…"

"James?" Chloe asked.

"Er…" Lily said.

"You called him James! You _never _call him James!"

"So? That's not the point…"

"Lily, do you think you could possibly _fancy_ him?"

"I…I…I…"

"Hello, girls." Said a voice behind Lily. 

Her jaw dropped and she looked behind her at James Potter. "Did you…?" She asked, and then turned back to Chloe. "Did he…?" Chloe shook her head, and Lily gave a deep sigh of relief. "What do you want, Potter?" She asked him.

"I want you to accept our apology."

"Not yet." Lily said, and walked away to sit in another chair.

Chloe lingered for a moment and looked from James to Lily, and then back at James.

"I'm off to bed," She said, sighing, and walked up the spiral staircase. Lily yawned and followed.

************************************************************************

The next night, James couldn't wait for seven o'clock to roll around. Fifteen minutes before he was supposed to, he raced down to the Quidditch pitch and hopped onto his broomstick, a Cleansweep. 

He loved flying ever since his first time on a broom. The air ruffled his hair and felt slightly cool on his skin. Even though he had Quidditch to keep his mind off of certain things, he couldn't help but think about Lily. _Why?_ He kept thinking. He had done four laps around the stadium before the rest of the team arrived. He landed, and walked up to Chloe and Penny.

"Are you girls going to-" He started.

"No." They replied in unison.

James then started talking to a boy with blonde hair and grey eyes. 

"Hey Aiden! How does it feel to be Quidditch captain?"

"Great!"

"Do you know if McGonagall even considered me?" James asked doubtfully. Aiden raised an eyebrow. "I didn't think so. I get into too much trouble, right?"

Aiden laughed. "Just a little. Okay, team, let's practice a bit with the Quaffle before we start playing…"

Quidditch practice ended earlier than James had expected it.

"Good job, everyone! We're definitely winning the Cup this year…not to be boastful, but we have three _great _chasers, a _fantastic _keeper, and an _excellent_ seeker. We also have our new beaters," He looked over at Benjamin Cole and Garrett Houston, "and they're enough to scare the socks off our opponents." Aiden beamed at them. They were only thirteen years old, but they were both at least six feet tall. "Alright, everyone, same time on Thursday." Benjamin and Garrett made their way back to the castle, and the rest of the team went to the showers. 

After James finished, he locked up his broom in the locker room and went to visit with Hagrid before meeting his friends.

************************************************************************

After Chloe showered and changed, she looked at herself in a mirror. She looked very tired, indeed, but still very pretty. Her long hair was still a bit damp from her shower, but it had started to gain its subtle waves; the freckles under her eyes and on her small nose were still prominent from the long summer holiday, and her cheeks were slightly pink from Quidditch practice. When she walked into the locker room and found that everyone had already left, she gathered her things quickly and rushed out. _I hate it when they leave me here alone…_ She thought. _It's so creepy! _

It had started to rain.

__

Oh, great. Chloe thought in sarcasm. She raced to the doors of the school, wrenched them open, and closed them behind her. She leaned back, panting slightly. _Phew!_

She walked up the marble staircase and around a corner into a dimly lit corridor. The scene that she saw made her feel sick to her stomach.

Three boys were standing over a smaller figure in the middle of the dark corridor. As Chloe crept closer, she recognized two of the three boys standing up. Julian Wright, an unintelligent, overweight bully, Michael Avery, a tall, muscular Quidditch player, and some other boy, all 7th years, had their wands pointed at a small, whimpering child lying in a heap at their feet. 

"This will teach to mess with us, Mudblood! _Crucio!_" Chloe gasped. The boy she didn't know had just used an Unforgivable Curse on another student! 

The three boys whipped around, hearing Chloe's sudden intake of breath. She immediately performed a Bat-Bogey Hex and Michael Avery fell to the floor in pain. The boy who had performed the Cruciatus Curse ran over to help his friend. Meanwhile, she heard bloodcurdling screams coming from the terrified face of the boy lying on the ground. Chloe knew his face…his brown hair and blue eyes were only too familiar…

"RYAN!" She shouted, and ran over to him. "Ryan," Chloe whispered to her brother, "Ryan…what did you do to them? What did they do to _you?_" She quickly helped him up. 

"I…I…I just…just…" Ryan stuttered, looking terribly scared of the boys in front of them, one still suffering from Chloe's hex and the others trying to perform the counter curse. After a few moments, they succeeded.

"Ryan, get out of here, ok? Go to the common room and stay put. Go! NOW!"

Ryan ran down the corridor and out of sight.

Julian Wright spoke up. "You are going to pay for that, Williams…"

************************************************************************

"Erm…Wormtail?" Sirius Black asked Peter Pettigrew.

"Yeah?" Peter replied. 

They had just been watching Ryan Williams climb in the portrait hole looking scared to death and trip twice on the way to the boys' staircase. A few people laughed, but continued with their conversations momentarily. 

"Look at the time." Sirius said.

"What…oh no! It's almost nine!"

"I'll go down and make sure the doors are clear…go get James's invisibility cloak!" Sirius said, and ran out of the common room. 

He was a few corridors away from the entrance hall when he heard a scream. 

"Get…get away from me!"

Sirius was about to turn the corner into another hallway, but stopped dead in his tracks. _What the…?_ He thought. He glanced around the corner and saw Chloe Williams cornered by three gigantic Slytherins. Her robes were torn in several places, but other than that she didn't look hurt. He caught Chloe's eye after a second and put his finger to his lips so she would know not to acknowledge his presence. She gave him an unobtrusive nod.

__

This is crazy…I'm no match for these guys! Sirius thought. He was quite correct, too. Julian Wright was alone almost three times the size of him. _Well, I've got to do something._

Sirius crept out of his hiding place and entered the dim corridor.

************************************************************************

__

I'm saved! Chloe thought, but she stopped in the middle of her sigh of relief. _Wait - what does Black think he's doing? He may be strong, but he's no match for these guys! _

Just then, Chloe heard Michael Avery mutter something, and her cheek started to sting terribly. She lifted her hand to her face and found that a cut had appeared under her right eye. 

__

I am not going to give them the pleasure of seeing me suffer! She thought, and blinked away the tears that had formed in her eyes. 

"Leave me _alone!_" Chloe shouted, and took out her wand. "I'm warning you-" She started, but the boy she didn't know snatched her wand away from her quicker than she could ever imagine. _Damn…_ She thought.

"You were saying…?" He said icily. Out of the corner of Chloe's eye, she saw Sirius getting silently closer to herself and the Slytherins. When she looked back at the boy in front of her, he had raised his wand. Chloe backed against the wall, and looked frantically around for anything she could use to help herself. 

"Nothing to save you now, Williams…nobody to even hear you _scream._" Chloe's eyes widened in fear as the boy came closer to her. 

__

Sirius…Sirius, help me! She thought hopefully. _He's going to curse me…Sirius…hurry! _

The boy opened his mouth. "_Cru-_" 

Chloe covered her eyes with her hands, but he never finished. Just as he was saying the curse, Sirius bellowed, "_Petrificus Totalus!_" 

Chloe uncovered her eyes. The boy's legs had snapped together, and his arms were pinned to his sides by magic. He fell backwards, unable to move from the joint-locking hex that Sirius had used on him. Julian Wright and Michael Avery turned around, forgetting about Chloe.

"_Expelliarmus!_" Avery yelled. Sirius's wand flew into the air and landed feet away from Chloe. She silently picked it up. _Those stupid oafs…_She thought. 

"What are you doing here, Black?" Wright asked. "You're supposed to be in your common room…it _is _past nine o'clock. 

"None of your business, and so are _you!_" Sirius replied, his handsome face enraged.

"Ahh…well, we were just having a little conversation with Williams, here," Avery said, and pointed behind himself at Chloe. "Not illegal, is it?"

"No, conversations aren't illegal, but the Unforgivable Curses are." Sirius said, smartly. "Tell me…have you guys made friends with Voldemort like your fathers have?" 

"That has nothing to do with this, Black!" Avery shouted. "And might I remind you that your own brother-" 

"_Petrificus Totalus!_" Chloe whispered. Avery fell to the floor the same way as the boy next to him. Chloe swiftly threw Sirius's wand to him, and he caught it.

"Who…?" Wright said, confused, and turned around to see that Chloe was still there. "_You!_" He shouted, and ran at her. 

"_Impedimenta!_" Sirius yelled, and Wright froze. Chloe looked from Sirius to the Slytherins, and then back at Sirius. He walked over to her and took her hand. "Come on, Chloe, we have to go…that hex will wear off soon…" _He used my first name…_ Chloe thought.

Sirius tried to pull her away, but she reluctantly let go of his hand and said, "Wait…"

She hastily grabbed the wands of the three cursed boys, ran to the closest girl's bathroom, and threw them in. 

************************************************************************

Sirius gaped at her, and she gave him a sly grin. "What? Didn't think of that one yourself?"

"No…that was great!" He replied. 

"We make a good team…"

"We do…"

"Sirius?"

__

She used my first name… He thought. 

"Yeah?" Sirius said, taking a step towards her.

"Erm…thanks." Said Chloe, and she started to walk away.

"Don't mention it…" Sirius mumbled, catching up to her.

They reached the common room a few moments later, and Chloe put her hand on Sirius's shoulder. He turned to face her.

"Seriously, though…" She said, removing her hand from him. She took a deep breath. "I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't shown up…so, thank you." Chloe finished and looked up at him. 

"Hey, well…I didn't want anything to happen to one of my best rivals. What would be the fun in that?" Sirius smiled.

Chloe smiled back and threw her arms around him. Sirius slowly and hesitantly put his arms around Chloe's waist and hugged her. Her scent made him think of cherries as her wavy hair brushed lightly against his cheek. 

"So…" Sirius said in a quiet voice. "Am I forgiven?"

He felt her smile into his shoulder. "Of course." She replied softly. 

"Why are we whispering?" He asked playfully. 

"I don't know!" Chloe said.

When Chloe released him, he spoke the password to Gryffindor tower, and they climbed into the portrait hole.

Sirius was met immediately by a nervous Peter, who kept frantically hissing things like, "We're going to be late! We're _already _late! Hurry! Let's go!" 

Sirius glanced at Chloe who had gone to sit by the fire, and they gave each other a look that clearly said they would not repeat the events that had just happened to anybody.

A/N: Ooh, sinister chapter! Lol! Happy ending, though, right? Thanks for reading, and please review! Give me ideas, and tell me where I'm off…I'd really like to know what I can do to improve! This is my second fan fiction…don't worry, there's more to come! I'll upload as often as I can…Thanks again! : ~ P

__


	8. Late Nights

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for the plot of this fan fiction, and any new characters I might create.

A/N: Thank you so much, Kari! I think that was one of the best reviews I've gotten so far! Thanks to padfoot! Thanks again to Chocolate Taco and Elisabeth Celebros! You guys rock. And, to Elisabeth and kantomon: You'll just have to wait and see!

Affection or Adventure?

Ch. 8: Late Nights

The weekend finally came and James, Remus and Peter were found apologizing endlessly to Lily, Penny, and Natalie.

"Will you guys just stop bugging us?!" Natalie asked.

"Not until you accept our apology!" James replied.

Penny sighed. "If we forgive you, will you just stop?" She said. Lily glared at her. "Come on, Lil! I'm sick of this!"

"Oh, fine." Lily said, exasperated. She forced a smile. "We forgive you."

The boys in front of them grinned.

"Well, is there anything you need help with?" James asked.

"Yeah, we would be glad to assist you." Remus said.

"Yeah…yeah." Peter added.

"You could help us by shutting up and going away!" Natalie shouted.

The boys retreated to where Sirius was sitting by the fire. James flopped into the armchair beside him and said, "They're pretty when they're angry." 

Remus and Peter nodded in agreement, but Sirius just stared into the fire.

"Padfoot?" James asked. "Sirius?"

He didn't move.

"Hello?" Remus said.

James smiled wickedly. "Hey, has anyone seen Williams lately?"

Sirius looked up out of his stupor. "What?" 

"What's with you?" Remus asked him.

"Nothing."

"Right."

"You know, I reckon you should try to be nice instead of annoying. That might get them to confess...I think I'm going to go to bed." Sirius got up.

James followed him, and when he entered their dormitory, he slammed the door behind him. 

"Sirius, come on. You're my best friend. What's on your mind? Or should I say, who's on your mind?" James said, grinning again.

"Nobody!" Sirius answered way too quickly.

"Ah hah! So, who is it?" 

"Nobody, James. I'm fine. I…just wish it was a full moon." Sirius said. "I'm bored, you know?"

"Yeah…" He replied. _I know you too well, Sirius. I'll find out soon enough…_ James thought to himself as he pulled on his pajamas. He hopped into his bed and pulled the hangings shut, thinking about a certain beautiful girl with crimson hair and emerald eyes.

"Goodnight, Padfoot." 

" 'Night."

************************************************************************

"Hey, where has Chloe been?" Lily Evans asked her friends. They were the only ones left in the common room; the Marauders had long since gone to bed.

"I think she's up in our room." Natalie replied.

"Lily, do you know what's up with her? She's been acting really strange lately…she can usually concentrate really well, but her thoughts have just been somewhere else." Penny said.

"I haven't had a real conversation with her since last week." Said Lily. "I'll go up and talk to her." She loaded her arms with all of the books she had been using to finish up her homework, and walked up the spiral staircase.

She reached the door to her dormitory and knocked a few times.

"Come in." Said a quiet voice within the room. Lily opened the door and found Chloe with her homework sprawled out on her bed.

"Why aren't you in the common room?" Lily asked, dumping her books onto a nearby chair. 

"I don't know."

"Chloe, what's wrong? I've barely seen you for the past couple of days! You haven't even come to dinner since the night of your first Quidditch practice, and now your never in the common room! It's almost like…you don't want to be around us." Lily finished in a sad tone.

"That's not it," Chloe said, sighing, "It's just…I'm so _confused_."

"What about?" Lily asked.

"Someone…" Chloe replied, looking at the floor. 

Lily sank onto her own four-poster bed. "And would this someone be-"

"No." 

"You don't even know what I was going to say!" Lily shouted, and laughed. "Fine, you don't have to tell me."

"So, what's going on with your whole James-thing?"

"It's not a 'James-thing!' It's just-"

"You two would look great together, you know." Chloe interrupted.

"Yeah, and so would you and Siri-"

"Shut up!" Chloe yelled, and threw a pillow at Lily. She began to laugh for the first time in days.

"Hey!" Lily shouted, laughing also. She threw the pillow back at Chloe.

"Oh, you're going to pay for that one!" Chloe said, standing up with a pillow in her hand.

"I am, am I?" Taunted Lily. She grabbed a pillow and was just about to get up when the door opened. She saw Penny and Natalie come in, and she threw the pillow at Penny. 

"Ouch!" She yelled.

"PENNY! You just got hit with a pillow that is filled with nothing but feathers! You don't say 'Ou-" Lily said, but she got cut off again. Penny had thrown a pillow at her.

"Penny, you know who you would look cute with?" Lily shouted.

"Lily-" Penny started.

"Remus Lupin!" Lily exclaimed.

"Shh!" Penny said, and hit Lily with another pillow.

"And Nat-"

"Don't even say it, Lily!" Natalie said, and threw yet another pillow at her.

"Hey!" Lily shouted, and threw pillows at all of her friends.

Chloe yelled, "Now now, Lily! This is no way for the Head Girl to act!" The girls all started laughing again.

"Oh my gosh, I have the _best_ idea!" Chloe said.

"What?" The other girls said in unison.

"We can get into the boys' dormitory, right? Even if they can't get into ours?"

"Yeah," Lily said. "Why?"

"Shall we have them join our harmless pillow fight?" Chloe said with a sly smile.

Penny and Natalie were already on their feet with several pillows in their hands, running out of the room. 

"Wait! You guys! I don't think we should…oh, it's no use." Lily sighed.

"Come on, Lil! I'll race you there!" Chloe shouted as she ran off, also.

They reached the spiral staircase to the boys' dormitories and crept silently up to the room for the 7th years. They opened and closed the door, and each girl ran to the side of one of the boys' beds. 

Lily opened the curtain to the bed that she had chosen. A sleeping James Potter lay there, and she thought, _Wow, it's amazing how innocent someone can look when they are fast asleep. Just my luck to get James._

Lily noticed several strands of untidy hair were resting unnaturally against one of his eyes. She reached down to brush them away, but as she did, his eyelids fluttered a bit. She quickly withdrew her hand and looked up.

Her friends were switching places with each other. Penny and Chloe stopped and looked at the occupants of the beds beside them with smiles on their faces. Natalie didn't look very happy about the boy she got stuck with.

Chloe put a single finger in the air. A few seconds later, she put up a second finger. On the third signal, Lily opened the bed hangings of James Potter's bed and hit him right in the face with a pillow.

************************************************************************

"AAHHHH! I'm being attacked!" James wailed. From somewhere in front of him, he heard a girl burst into laughter. He rummaged for his glasses on his nightstand and put them on. What he saw made his jaw drop.

"Do you like pillows, Potter?" Lily Evans asked him before hitting him on the top of his head again. He rolled over and got out of his bed on the other side. All of his friends were awake, yelling at the laughing girls. James grinned, grabbed a pillow from his bed, and threw it at Lily.

"Take _that_, Evans!"

Soon enough, the floor was completely covered in feathers. Four boys and four girls laid on it in a heap.

"Well, you girls put up a good fight, but we got you in the end." Sirius said. He had Chloe pinned to the floor with his hands on her wrists to keep her from grabbing more pillows. Remus had done the same to Penny, and James had done the same to Lily. 

"Well…" Natalie said. James looked over at her. She had Peter pinned to the ground.

"Except for Peter, that is." Sirius continued. 

"So, do you girls like seeing us in our pajamas?" James asked, but in the split second that his, Sirius's, and Remus's concentration was lifted, the girls had quickly rolled over and stood up.

"What were you saying about winning?" Lily asked. 

The boys stood up and came towards them.

"Okay, okay!" Chloe said. "Truce?"

"Fine…" The boys muttered.

Penny yawned and looked at a watch on one of the nightstands. "I'm going to sleep, it's after midnight!" She said.

"Well, who's fault is that?" Remus asked.

"Chloe's! She suggested it!" Penny answered.

Chloe tried to look innocent. "Er…well…have a good nights' sleep! See you boys later!" With that, she ran out of the room. Penny and Natalie followed after saying a swift "Goodnight!" Lily stayed behind for a few moments. The other Marauders climbed back into their beds, but James remained with Lily.

"Sleep tight, Evans." He said. Lily smiled at him.

His eyes locked with hers. The façade of hate that was always worn on her face when she was around James was all but diminished. For what seemed like a fraction of a second, something shown out of Lily's bright emerald eyes that James had never seen before. Fondness or affection were words too weak to describe it. The only word that fit perfectly had to be…_love. _

James was unsure if he had just imagined it, though, for it went as quickly as it came. 

Lily gasped. "Good…goodnight, Potter…James." She gave him another small smile, turned on her heel, and walked away. James had a longing to go after her, but he stayed rooted to his spot until he thought he heard a door close in the distance.

************************************************************************

"Ugh…late night tonight." Said Natalie as the Gryffindor 7th years reached their house table on Monday morning.

"Astronomy?" Chloe asked, stifling a yawn.

"Yep." Penny replied, checking her schedule. Their Astronomy classes took place at midnight in the Astronomy tower. 

"Oh well." Lily said, sighing. 

She had done a lot of thinking since the beginning of the weekend, and she was still confused about her feelings towards James Potter.

Lily tried her hardest not to think of that night through the day, but she found her concentration wavering in Divination, as it sometimes did.

__

What happened? It was almost as if a mask was pulled off of James that night…I saw something in him…something…something good. Something I - NO! No, I can't…I just can't! James Potter, the arrogant, conceited, big-headed jerk? No…surely not…but…but…oh, I just don't know!

Lily peered over her shoulder and looked at the back of the classroom. She had been expecting James and his friends to be sleeping or fooling around, but today they were paying attention.

__

Trying to look as if they are paying attention, more like. Lily thought. 

James turned towards Lily and met her eyes. She quickly switched her attention to the teacher, her cheeks tinted pink.

__

__

That night, around midnight, the eight students climbed up the staircase to the Astronomy tower.

James got to the door first and held it open. The other three boys stepped to the side, also.

"Ladies first!" He said.

The girls all smiled at him as they walked by.

__

Maybe this little boy is finally growing up… Lily thought.

Their astronomy teacher met them seconds later.

"Okay class, please set up your telescopes along the rail…thank you…" Professor Galaxia stated, pulling her long black hair into a low pony tail. "We will be observing Uranus tonight."

__

Oh, this should be fun… Thought Lily.

But the jokes that Lily had been prepared to hear never came. The Marauders kept to themselves and completed their work without complaint.

************************************************************************

They were on their way back to the common room when James heard a crash in a nearby room. 

"Did you hear that?" He asked Sirius. 

"Yeah, Prongs."

They all stopped.

"So…who w…wants to l…look in th...there?" Peter inquired. 

James rolled his eyes and took a step forward. The door was ajar; the room looked as if it was just waiting to be disturbed. 

__

Too late… James thought.

He took another few steps forward.

BANG!

Peter and the girls screamed. Sirius and Remus, who were in between James and the others, were knocked off their feet from the blast. James had flown back about six feet and landed on top of Sirius.

"OY PRONGS! Get…get off! I can't…breathe…" 

James rolled over onto the ground, leaving Sirius panting heavily next to him.

They all heard a very high-pitched cackling above them. 

James lifted his head. There was a little man wearing vibrantly colored clothing and an odd hat hovering cross-legged about nine feet off the ground. "PEEVES! You stupid poltergeist! You nearly rendered me unconscious!" 

Peeves snapped his fingers. "And it didn't work. I'll just have to try harder next time! How have you been, Phil?"

"_My name is James._" James said, standing up.

"Of course, Phil." Said Peeves, a grin spreading across his wide face.

"A little help, Prongs?" Sirius said. James helped Sirius and Remus to their feet. 

"Go away, Peeves." Remus said.

"Why should Peeves go away when the students are supposed to be in bed?"

"Forget it, guys…let's just go. He's right…we're supposed to be in our common rooms." Lily said.

The boys sighed and started to walk away.

"Are ickle students afraid of little Peevesie-kins?" 

"Shut it, Peeves!" Shouted James.

"Make me!" Peeves yelled.

James whipped out his wand and muttered a few words. Seconds later, the poltergeist's feet started dancing around uncontrollably.

"YOU DAUGHTER OF A MONKEY-FISH!" Peeves screeched. "STUDENTS OUT OF BED NEAR THE ASTRONOMY TOWER PERFORMING MAGIC IN THE CORRIDOR! STUDENTS OUT OF-" 

But Peeves didn't finish. James performed a Silencing Charm, so no matter how Peeves tried, he couldn't make a sound.

The four boys and four girls started walked back up the corridor when they heard Peeves slamming random objects into the floor in that classroom he had blasted moments before.

James turned around. Mrs. Norris, the caretaker's cat, was sitting inches away from them. 

"Run! That cat will have Filch here in seconds!" James shouted. 

The eight students only rested when they were safely back in their common room. The fire was roaring, and they all sat down around it.

"Phew…that was close…" James said.

"A little _too _close." Lily muttered.

"Sorry, didn't catch that." James smirked. 

Lily looked up. "Forget it."

"Well!" Chloe said. "Did anybody see any new announcements posted?"

"I'll check the notice board," Sirius offered. He came back looking very pleased. "The first Hogsmeade visit is on Halloween." He told them.

"Great!" James said, rather loudly.

"Keep your voice down!" Lily whispered. "There are other people trying to sleep!"

For a second James thought about making some snide remark, but his mock kindness took over and he put on a fake smile. "Sorry, Lily."

"That's quite alright."

James's smile became a real one. "Well, I don't suppose you girls would like to join us in going to Hogsmeade, now, would you?"

The girls thought about it for a few moments.

"Er…I guess that would be fine." Lily said, redness creeping into her pretty face.

"Great!" James said again, loudly. Lily put a finger to her lips. "Er…sorry about that."

"Well, I'm going to bed, It's late…or early, rather…" Chloe said, standing up.

"Me too," Penny said, yawning.

Natalie stood up, also. "Are you coming, Lily?"

"In a few minutes, I have a spot of homework to finish." Lily said. "You go on."

The girls climbed the stairs to their dormitory after saying goodnight.

James yawned. Sirius, Remus, and Peter looked at him and did the same thing.

"Well, I'm off to bed, too." Sirius said, and stood up. Remus and Peter did the same. James thought he heard Sirius say, very quietly, "Leave him to it," and they walked away.

James looked at Lily, working on her homework. The fire in front of them danced in her green eyes, and the light coming from it made her hair shine.

"I'm tired…" James said, standing up.

"Go to sleep, then." Lily whispered, not looking up from her parchment. 

"I think I will…Goodnight, Lily." She finally glanced up in him, and he saw in her eyes what he had seen on the night of the pillow fight.

"Goodnight, James." 

James walked away, his instinct giving him the thought that someone was watching him. When he turned back at the bottom of the staircase, he looked back at Lily. She was bent over her work once again. He smiled, and walked upstairs. James fell asleep as he always did, his thoughts never leaving Lily Evans.


	9. Promises

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except for the plot of this fan fiction, and any new characters I might create. The rest belongs to the brilliant J. K. Rowling, whom, I am sorry to say, I am quite displeases with at the moment.

A/N: 22 reviews?! Thanks so much to everyone! And thanks to all the people who give me ideas to build from!

Another **important** A/N: Before you read this chapter, you should know that I added a whole lot more to Ch. 8, and I changed the title to "Late Nights." So, read that before you read this, and review, please! You have been forewarned…lol.

Affection or Adventure?

Ch. 9: Promises

The air over the Hogwarts grounds dropped several degrees as October began. As the first Quidditch game of the year drew closer and closer, the captains forced their teams to train as hard as possible.

"Now," Aiden said at the end of a Tuesday night practice, "Our first match is going to be taking place on November 2nd, and-"

"We'll be playing," Penny said.

"The Slytherins." Chloe finished. "Aiden, you've told us this for the last four practices. I'm pretty sure it's been drilled into all of our brains by now, right guys?" The rest of the team nodded. 

Aiden sighed. "Alright then, hit the showers." 

Chloe needed to get back to the common room because she had a bunch of homework left to do, and she needed to write a letter to her parents telling them how she was. She rushed around, doing everything about ten times quicker than she usually would. She threw her hair into a pony tail, leaving a few stands astray, and ran out of the locker room. 

"Hey…CHLOE!" She turned around to see Penny in the doorway she had just come out of. 

"Yeah?"

"Where's the fire?" Penny said, grinning.

"I have a ton of homework to finish. What do you want?"

"I thought you might need this!" Penny took a broom out from behind her back.

"Oh, thanks a bunch!" Chloe said, grabbing her Shooting Star and running off again. "See you!" 

Chloe sat down in a cozy chair by the fire about five minutes later. She was incredibly tired; every muscle in her body ached from working so hard in Quidditch practice.

__

At least we'll be ready for the game… She told herself, taking out her Transfiguration essay. 

All of a sudden, two hands clamped themselves ever Chloe's eyes. 

"_Guess who…_" A voice whispered in her ear. 

Chloe smiled. "I have no idea." She replied. 

The hands were removed from her face. "It's me, Ryan!" Chloe's brother shouted.

"What do you think you're doing, trying to scare me like that?" She asked in a mean voice. 

Ryan's smirk was wiped off of his face. "I…er…"

Chloe grinned. "Get over here you little bugger!" 

Ryan tried to run away, but Chloe tackled him to the ground and began tickling him.

"Get off!" Ryan was yelling while he giggled uncontrollably. 

"Fine, fine…" She said, after a short while. Chloe got up and sat back down in her chair to finish her essay.

"What are you doing?" Ryan asked her.

"An essay." Chloe replied.

"What about?"

"Metamorphmagi."

"What's that?"

"They are beings that can change their appearance at will." 

Ryan looked confused. He opened his mouth as if to ask another question, but Chloe stopped him. "It means that they can change the way they look whenever they want to." She explained, looking down at her parchment.

"Oh…"

Chloe glanced up at him and suddenly, an idea popped into her head. 

__

I can't believe I didn't think of this before! She said to herself.

************************************************************************

Sirius was sitting in a corner of the common room trying to finish his homework, which he had neglected to complete due to another full moon. 

"There is no spell that can change a person into a Metamorphmagus," Sirius murmured to nobody in particular. He was saying the words as he wrote them for his Transfiguration essay. "The only way a Metamorphmagus can be created is if they are-"

"Born."

Sirius looked up rather quickly, knowing by the sound of her voice that Chloe would be standing before him.

"Hello," He said, flashing her a charming smile.

"Hi," Chloe replied, and sat down next to him. "What are you working on?"

"The essay for McGonagall…have you finished it?"

"Not yet, but almost. I was just working on it, but then I thought of something."

"Like what?"

"Well…I was just wondering…" Chloe lowered her voice considerably, and leaned towards Sirius. "Should we…well, could we tell Dumbledore about that guy who used the Cruciatus Curse on the night of the first Quidditch practice?"

"Nott?" Sirius asked. "He didn't actually use it, did he?"

Chloe looked uneasy and she started to fiddle with the golden locket that hung around her neck.

Sirius jumped up. "HE CURSED YOU?!" He practically shouted. Some students stopped chatting and turned towards him. He grinned sheepishly at them all, gave them a little wave, and they shrugged and resumed conversation.

Chloe pushed him back to the floor. "Not me!" She whispered exasperatedly. "My brother. I never told you, but before you came, those Slytherins were ganging up on him. That guy - Nott, or whatever you said his name was - used the Cruciatus Curse on him a little while after I arrived; I had Quidditch practice."

Sirius laughed. "That was the night of the full moon."

Chloe looked taken aback. "What is it with you guys and the full moon?"

"Er…nothing. Go on."

"Anyway, they were saying things to him…I think they said 'This will teach you to mess with us, Mudblood,' or something. He told me afterward that he was taunting the Slytherins about how mean and ugly they were, thinking he could get away from them fast enough. But they took out their wands too quickly for him and they…they cursed him." Chloe finished, looking down at the floor. 

"Look, it's not your fault, okay?" Sirius said.

Chloe sighed. "I just think that if I had gotten there sooner-"

"No. Forget it. You didn't do it, the Slytherins did. It's their problem, not yours."

"Well, can we really go to Dumbledore? I mean, I'm positive he'd believe us, but for all he knows, we could just be trying to get the Slytherins in trouble."

"You're right. There's no proof."

"So they're just going to get away with this?" Chloe said angrily.

"Hell no! We'll get them back somehow."

"I have an invisibility cloak! I got it last year for a gift."

"So does James."

Chloe smiled. "Well, there's a start!"

************************************************************************

A few days passed, and the girls began to feel guilty. 

"I think we should tell the Marauders about our little joke." Chloe declared before dinner one evening.

"_Why?_" Natalie said.

"You know, Chloe, I reckon you're right. It's getting so weird. It almost seems like James's head has actually deflated a bit. I mean, he's been acting better this year then any other, but this is different. I'm not saying it's bad…but it's just…_weird!_" Lily said.

"Yeah! Sirius has been treating me like a lady! Don't you see what I mean?" Chloe asked.

Penny nodded. "Remus has been acting differently, too. Well, he's always been the most sincere of the group, but not that much more than the others. He's been opening doors for me and carrying my books almost everywhere I go!"

"Right, Penny," Said Natalie, "But do we really _want_ them to change back? It's almost like they've grown up a little…and that could be good for them. Peter is an annoying little twit, but he's being a gentleman."

"We can't just keep lying to them. Who knows? Maybe they'll stay the way they are." Penny stated.

"Penny! These are the _Marauders_ we're talking about!" Natalie exclaimed.

"Hey, here they come! Come on, let's just get this over with…it was nice while it lasted." Chloe got up, along with Lily and Penny. Natalie followed, but only reluctantly.

The Marauders had gone to sit by the fire, as usual. There weren't many people left in the common room; most had already left for dinner. 

"Hey guys?" Penny said as they come closer to the boys. They sat down and faced the boys. "We have to tell you something."

"And what would that be, Payge?" Said James, irritably. Out of the corner of her eye, Chloe saw Remus kick him. "Oh…I mean…what is it, Penny?" A clearly fake smile sprouted on his lips.

"Erm…er…" Penny stammered.

"When you guys pulled that prank on us a few weeks ago, it didn't really effect us as much as you might have thought." Chloe blurted out.

"Yeah, we cried on purpose just to make you guys feel bad, but we didn't think that you were going to start worshipping us like you do now." Lily said.

Penny spoke at last. "And even though we hate to say it, we felt bad."

To Chloe's utter surprise, the boys didn't looked shocked or stunned at all. In fact, their expressions hadn't changed in the least.

All of a sudden, the boys all grinned and started clapping. Chloe's jaw dropped and she gaped at the Marauders, now howling with laughter.

Sirius spoke first. "We were wondering when you girls would come clean!"

"You…you…you…" Penny stuttered.

"Knew? Of course!" Said Remus. "You girls would have _never _gotten that upset over a little bit of water!"

"Plus, we heard you talking about it before breakfast on the first day of classes." James stated. 

Chloe smiled a sad smile and shook her head. "Fooled by the Marauders yet again."

"We will get you back, you know…someday…" Penny said.

Lily just sighed. "Well, I'm off to dinner. Are you all coming?" She asked. 

There were scattered agreements and they all got up and left the common room.

************************************************************************

Sirius was just about to step out of the portrait hole when he realized he had forgotten his wand. 

"Hey, Prongs, I have to go grab my wand. I don't feel right without it. I'll meet you in the Great Hall." 

"Okay. Are you sure you don't want me to wait for you?" James asked him.

"Nah, you go down to dinner. I'll be there in a minute. Save me a seat!" 

Sirius climbed back into the common room and raced up to his room. His wand lay on his bedside table. He grabbed it and ran back down the stone steps, thinking he could probably catch up with his friends.

As the painting of the Fat Lady closed behind him, he heard a soft voice.

"So it was an act, then?" Asked Chloe. She was sitting a few feet to the right of him with her knees drawn up to her chest and her hands clamped tightly around them. Her eyes didn't leave her knees when she spoke,

"What do you mean?" Sirius said, walking towards her. Then it dawned on him.

"What you did…when…when I was cornered by those Slytherins…was it an act?" Chloe finally looked up at him, her hazel-green eyes boring into his dark blue ones, as if trying to unlock the secrets behind them. 

"No, Chloe! No, of course not!" Sirius sat down beside her. "I would have helped you no matter what."

"Really?" Chloe asked, her face extremely serious. 

"Really." Sirius replied. "Just because us guys pick on you girls sometimes-" Chloe raised an eyebrow. "Alright, well, most of the time…it doesn't meant that we don't care about you. I mean, we're friends, right?"

"Right." Chloe said, and smiled at him. He returned the smile and stood up. He held out his hand to help Chloe up, and she took it. When she got to her feet, Sirius still held onto her and looked directly at her. She seemed to be looking anywhere but him.

"Chloe?"

"What?" Chloe asked in a very quiet voice.

"Do you still want to go to Hogsmeade with me? Er…I mean…well, do you and your friends still want to join my friends and I on Halloween? As friends?" _You sound like an idiot! _He said to himself. Sirius was sure he had never felt this nervous before, except for when he was just starting at Hogwarts. Sure, he had flirted with other girls, and even gone out with a few of them…but there was something different about Chloe Williams. He found himself wanting to know everything about her. She amazed him like no other.

Chloe's eyes met his. "I'll have to ask the rest, but I'm in." She replied, smiling sweetly. 

"Great." Sirius said with a sigh on relief. Chloe gently let go of his and and they made their way down the corridor.

"And Chloe?" 

"Yes?"

"I solemnly swear to always help you out." Sirius said, grinning and placing his hand over his heart.

Chloe laughed. "And I, oh-great-Marauder, solemnly swear to laugh at you if you ever _need _help!" She gave him a little bow.

"Hey!" Sirius said, laughing with her.

"Nah, I'm just kidding. Chloe said, twirling a lock of her light brown hair between two of her fingers. Sirius smiled, noticing her habit. "I've got your back if you've got mine." She said.

"Anytime." Said Sirius, still smiling his handsome smile.

A/N: Thanks for reading, and please review! Give me ideas, and tell me where I'm off…I'd really like to know what I can do to improve! This is my second fan fiction…don't worry, there's more to come! I'll upload as often as I can…Thanks again!


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